Articles

Rhinelander Personal Injury Lawyer

Rollover Accidents

Rollover accidents are the deadliest risk facing SUV, minivan, and truck occupants. Every year, there are more than 280,000 rollover accidents which claim more than 10,000 lives. 35.7% of all fatal SUV crashes were the result of a rollover. SUVs are more likely to roll than other vehicles in serious accidents.

A vehicle’s possibility of rolling is directly related to its stability in turns. Stability is a function of a vehicle’s center of gravity and track width, the length of a vehicle’s axel. A low center of gravity combined with a wide track width gives the car plenty of stability. A high center of gravity with a narrow track width gives the car not much stability; the car is likely to be unstable in fast turns or sharp changes of direction.

When a vehicle is unstable, it increases the chances that it will tip over once it begins to skid sideways. This problem is most pronounced in 4-wheel-drive pickup trucks and SUVs. They have a higher center of gravity than their 2-wheel-drive counterparts due to the higher ground clearance that they need for off-road driving.

The majority of 4-wheel-drive rollovers are single-vehicle accidents. They most frequently occur on weekend nights and the vehicles are generally driven by males under the age of 25. Alcohol is frequently a factor. In 75% of fatal rollovers, the victims were ejected from the vehicle which indicates that the driver was not wearing a seatbelt.

Neither cars nor trucks are subject to federal rollover standards. There is pressure building for such a standard though. In 2001, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) introduced a rollover rating system to predict which vehicles might have a greater likelihood of rolling.

If you have been injured in a rollover accident, contact the Rhinelander car crash lawyers of Habush, Habush, & Rottier, S.C. at 1- 800-369-5990 to discuss the specifics of your case and to schedule an initial consultation.